"...the release of AVCC, an open-source web application for the rapid inventory of physical film, video, and audio materials. Developed with funding from the Library of Congress’ National Recording Preservation Board – in addition to funding support from the Metropolitan New York Library Resource Council and New York State Documentary Heritage Program for previous versions of the tool – AVCC provides a series of inventory templates and quantitative reports that promote simple and fast documentation and analysis of collections of audiovisual materials."

Karen du Toit's insight:

Free access to an account! Looks like a great tool for archivists and librarians!

Learning by making has been around since long before edtech—just think about what the adventurous explorers or intrepid settlers of yore would have thought of "Do-It-Yourself." But with thousands of kid-friendly tech tools and a whole World Wide Web of resources out there, creative, interesting opportunities for learning-by-making abound for everyone.

Okay, so with all those resources, where should you start to build a makerspace? Here at EdSurge, we've rolled up our sleeves, put on our protective goggles, and built a Maker Guide from scratch, just for you.

Read on for ideas from the educators and entrepreneurs who think making 24/7, including what is involved with project-based learning and making in the classroom and tried-and-true lessons from the field on starting your makerspace.

Making on a budget? We surely do. We've got ideas for stocking your space with resources from your arts and crafts closet, plus inspiration from educators working to bring makerspaces to low-income and all-girls classrooms.

The Nepal earthquake badly damaged the Kaiser Library, an opulent palace in the heart of Kathmandu home to rare books, maps and ancient manuscripts, raising concerns over the future of these valuable cultural artefacts.

"The African Journal Archive (AJA) is a Sabinet Gateway project in conjunction with the Carnegie Corporation that is making African research accessible to the whole world. The archive preserves journal literature emanating from publishers and societies in Africa and includes searchable collections of journal articles that have been digitised back to the earliest possible issues. This archive is indeed a valuable resource for local and international libraries.

The archive is now available on an easy-to-use website which enables easy discoverability of articles and also enhances the research experience of end users."

"As librarians we protect our services, collections, and patrons from censorship and bias. Simply put- We do not allow it. From too much left or right wing material to too much sci-fi or mystery. At our core we begin from a place of balance, equality, representation, and non-censorship. This is one of librarianship’s inherent characteristics that draw people to join the profession.

Interestingly I found this today:

Wikipedia Countering Systemic Bias Project

The Wikipedia project suffers systemic bias that naturally grows from its contributors’ demographic groups, manifesting an imbalanced coverage of a subject, thereby discriminating against the less represented demographic groups. …This project aims to control and (possibly) eliminate the cultural perspective gaps made by the systemic bias, consciously focusing upon subjects and points of view neglected by the encyclopedia as a whole."

"This conference may be of interest to small organizations who are interested in digital preservation but have limited resources.

Personal Digital Archiving 2015, hosted by New York University’s Moving Image Archive Program, is April 24-26

"Many of us now document our lives digitally. As these collections grow, so do the challenges involved in their management, preservation and use. Creators must actively manage their files, and collecting institutions must adapt their processes to accommodate personal digital materials.

This conference focuses on many topics relevant to personal digital archiving. It will provide information useful for libraries, archives and museums, as well as individuals, community groups, activist groups and others interested in personal digital collections.

PDA 2015 will feature two full days of presentations focused on a set of themes and a third day for workshops covering useful tools and methods."

Become an expert in the best mobile apps for education and content creation

Mobile apps are empowering for people of all ages and abilities

As librarians and educators, we are passionate about learning and access to information for all. Contrary to the popular idea that apps are only useful for “consumption,” the best mobile apps are being used effectively as tools to enable learning and knowledge creation.

Got iPads, but no time to discover the best apps?

If you’ve ever felt overwhelmed by the number of apps available and not sure where to start with finding the best ones, you’re not alone!

Many librarians have told me that they feel

excited about having new iPads, but not sure of the best apps to recommend and use.overwhelmed by the sheer number of apps available.unsure where to start with finding and evaluating the best educational apps.worried about the digital divide and the loss of access to information for all.

You might have new iPads in your library or school, but what are the best learning experiences you can create with them? You know that just throwing technology at a problem is NOT the way to go.

When you become “app-literate,” you serve your community by becoming their go-to expert on mobile apps.

Fixity creates a manifest of files stored in directories identified by the user, documenting file names, locations, and checksums. The user can then schedule regular automated scans of the directories to monitor for any changes to files. Fixity is ideal for monitoring of files in long term storage, complimenting tools such as Bagger and the BagIt specification that can be used to check fixity at points of transition.

Major recent updates include:

• Created OSX version (64-bit systems only)

• Added support for MD5 in addition to the SHA256 checksum algorithm

• Added ability to change checksum algorithm for a project

• Added ability to import projects between versions of Fixity

• Added ability to update the location of a scanned directory

• Implemented SQLite database for storing projects

• Improved reporting

• Updated logic for reporting on copied and moved files

• Improved handling of special characters in file paths

• Added history directory to store snapshots of the manifest over time

• Create tasks as Administrator on Windows, allowing projects to run when logged off.

"Despite the vast and growing resources available online, much of the world's knowledge and history remains ephemeral and under threat of disappearance."

"Since 2004, the British Library’s Endangered Archives Programme, supported by the Arcadia Fund, has funded nearly 246 projects in 78 countries to preserve and digitize archives at risk of extinction."

"...the British Library announced in a press release the release of From Dust to Digital: Ten Years of the Endangered Archives Programme. The publication, free to read online, chronicles 19 of the major preservation projects, including monastic manuscripts in Ethiopia, ecclesiastical archives on the history of slavery in Colombia and Brazil, and the sound archives of Radio Télévision Guinée and Iranian Golha radio."

It is exciting to feel energy build around a library and cultural arts center in downtown Columbus. The Columbus City Council has had their support galvanized by grant money coming

"So when you think of a library in 100, 300, or 500 years, imagine a beautiful building with spaces for discussion, contemplation and creation where wisdom can be shared. Imagine skilled librarians making sure that everyone has access to organized, meaningful resources that raise the level of public discussion above the din of the internet. Imagine all that topped off with a collection of the best hardbacks available."

Theme: Developing a stronger network for preservation and conservation in Africa to enable effective responses to natural disasters and man-made conflicts

We invite you to submit a proposal for the session of Preservation and Conservation Strategic Programme at the 81st IFLA General Conference and Assembly to be held in Cape Town, South Africa in August 2015.

The theme of the session will look closely at the library networks within Africa, their response to natural disasters and man-made conflicts as well as the strength of the community.

The Preservation of Conservation Strategic Programme therefore encourages submissions around the topics of:

Responses of the (international, regional and national) library community to natural disasters in AfricaResponses of the (international, regional and national) library community to man-made conflicts in AfricaLessons learned from disaster responses (including challenges and successes)The importance of regional cooperation to effective disaster responseThe importance of adequate training for effective disaster response

"Do artists use libraries as part of their creative process? And if so, how are they using them? For research? For a quiet place to work and contemplate? For project inspiration? If artists are using libraries in their creative process, are they getting what they need? How can libraries serve artists more effectively?

About the Library as Incubator Project

These are just a few of the questions that prompted the development of the Library as Incubator Project during the 2010-2011 academic year when the project’s co-founders, Laura Damon-Moore, Christina Jones (then Christina Endres) and Erinn Batykefer were graduate students in the School of Library and Information Studies (SLIS) at the University of Wisconsin-Madison."

The archival profession has long attempted to define what constitutes a professional archivist. These debates over education, training, and certification have lasted decades, however few studies have been completed on how the employment market for archivists has changed in response to these professional challenges. This study looks at almost a thousand professional archivist job advertisements between late 2006 and early 2014 to understand the current prevailing recruitment criteria. It is broader in scope and time period than other recent studies. Overall, the market was determined to be mostly stable during the study period.

Conclusion:

Future studies of archivist job advertisements, as well as larger studies of archivists (such as A*CENSUS), would lead to a increased understanding of the profession. This information would also aid archivists themselves, by providing benchmarks to advocate for themselves and their institutions."

"...the 35th edition of the ongoing technical symposium, The Reel Thing, to take place in Los Angelesover the course of three days, August 20 – 22, 2015 including an opening night reception and screening on August 20. The event will take place at the Linwood Dunn Theater in the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ Pickford Center for Motion Picture Study, 1313 Vine St., in Hollywood.

As with all editions of The Reel Thing, we focus on the wide range of critical issues facing archivists, technicians, asset managers and curators of image and sound in the current media/digital landscape. Problems and solutions involving digital creation workflows (2K/4K/6K/8K), data storage access and recovery, image scanning and recording, image resolution metrics, traditional video and audio preservation and restoration issues are topics of interest. Of particular interest are the preservation and archiving issues surrounding Digital Intermediate and Digital Production workflows for motion pictures and television/streaming. If you have been working in these or related areas of interest, we invite you to propose a presentation summarizing the technical, theoretical and practical facets of your work/"

Archival materials give you direct access to the time or event you are studying. The goal of this guide is to help you conduct research at the Clara Thomas Archives & Special Collections at York University Libraries.